Introduction example: Accounting and training became easier, and regular customers can drop by more casually. Achieved a reduction in operational costs (SOBA.BAR.PARTY SPACE En / Soba Bar Party Space Kizuna)

Fast support, cost, and ease of use were the deciding factors for switching

— Please tell me about your shop.

I really like soba restaurants, but the drinks they usually serve are just things like beer, shochu, and highballs. I often wanted to invite friends out to eat at a soba place, but felt there weren’t many drink options, so I decided to open a soba restaurant that stocks various kinds of liqueurs and whiskies—a “soba bar” concept.

— The shop’s name also includes the words “Party Space.” Why is that?

One of our regular customers saw this place and said, “The space is so big, you could probably host parties here.” At weddings, or in the hostess and host clubs you see in TV dramas, there’s that “champagne tower” where champagne glasses are stacked up in a pyramid, right? I thought it might be fun to offer that champagne tower for party use, so we brought out the tallest one with seven tiers, and before COVID we were able to attract quite a lot of customers with it.

We also have manga, darts, and board games available, so children can enjoy themselves without getting bored. On weekdays, we mostly get solo customers and people stopping by after work, but on weekends we often have families and groups coming in with course reservations for several people.

— Please also tell us about your popular menu items.

Our “Soba Shop Fried Chicken,” which you dip into soba broth before eating, is very popular. You can choose from three options—2 pieces, 4 pieces, or 6 pieces—so some people order it as a snack to go with drinks, while others enjoy 4 pieces together with rice.

— Please tell us why you decided to introduce Respo Self-Order.

We originally used a different self-order system, but the drawback was that we had to pay an additional fee to make phone inquiries when there were problems. Inquiries by email were free, but if we contacted them after 6 p.m., the reply wouldn’t come until the next day, which was an issue when we needed an immediate response.
In that respect, Respo Self-Order allows both email and phone support, and they said they could respond quickly, which we really liked. On top of that, the low monthly cost and the ease of use were the deciding factors for introducing it.

Customers no longer need to call staff, and orders have increased.

— After introducing Respo Self-Order, what kind of changes have you seen?

Since customers no longer need to call staff over every time, the number of orders has increased significantly. The reason is that our table seating is on what you might call a mezzanine, slightly elevated due to the layout of the restaurant, so I think it used to be hard for customers to call out to the staff. Some customers still place their orders verbally, such as those whose smartphone data speed is restricted, those who find it troublesome to connect to the restaurant’s Wi‑Fi, or older customers who aren’t used to mobile ordering. But around 80% of our customers are able to place their orders without any issues.

Our regular customers in particular say things like, “It’s really great that we can pay by card or PayPay ourselves without having to call a staff member,” and for us staff, it’s easier too because we no longer have to bring the card reader over to the customer’s table every time. Sometimes our regulars will even explain how to use it to first-time customers who seem a bit unsure about the operation. It’s also led to more communication between customers, which we didn’t see much of before, and that’s been another positive change since we introduced the system.

So that more than half of our regular customers use online payments

— So the way the shop is designed and the self-ordering system are also encouraging conversations between customers. Roughly what percentage of your customers use online payment?

Online payments have grown tremendously, and more than half of our regular customers now pay online. They choose online payment to help reduce the workload for our staff. By the way, we even have customers who come without their wallets, saying, “I came because I ran out of cash on me,” you know (laughs).

They’ve told us things like, “This place is convenient because you can log in to the self-ordering site and pay online,” and “(When paying with PayPay) it’s great that you don’t have to scan a QR code at the register and can complete everything with just your own smartphone.”

— After introducing Respo Self-Order, what kind of changes have you seen on the restaurant side?

By making ordering and payment self-service, the operational workload has been reduced to about one-third. Another benefit is that the time needed for training new staff has decreased. This is about our previous location, but there were cases where younger staff or staff who weren’t very familiar with alcohol, when a customer ordered whisky, would ask, “Would you like that with oolong tea or green tea?” or, when it was a wine order, would ask, “How would you like it mixed?”

With self-ordering, customers can choose how they want their noodles cooked as an option themselves, so even staff who have just started working no longer ask off-the-mark questions or make mistakes. It’s great because after about 20 minutes of explanation on the first day, they can already be an immediate asset.

Make checkout quicker and easier. Perfect for single-staff stores.

--- What kind of stores is Respo Self-Order recommended for?

I think it’s especially easy to use for people running the shop alone. Even if you’re not using online payments and are taking payment at the register, self-ordering lets you finish the process quickly. By simply tapping the POS register screen, the customer’s total amount due is instantly displayed, so we’ve been able to greatly reduce input errors and the time customers spend waiting to pay.

When several customers end up waiting to pay at the register, we make a point of saying, “The amount will be shown on your own smartphone screen, so would you mind preparing that amount while you wait?” With self-ordering, customers can’t change the total on their side, so we can trust it, and since we just match it with the amount on the store’s screen and complete the payment right away, it’s extremely convenient.

Store Information

SOBA.BAR.PARTY SPACE En / Soba Bar Party Space Kizuna

Address: 2-219 Hongo, Meito Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture
Store details:https://autoreserve.com/ja/restaurants/6iibxjT9GaxNNMYsRw6s